1940. Gretchen Diane Christopher (The Fleetwoods) born in Olympia, Washington.

On Tour

2000. Fiona Apple walks off stage at New York’s Roseland after complaining about the concert’s sound system. After hurling a stream of abuse about the sound and also at the critics, she announces a five minute break and walks off stage. Half an hour later, the concert promoter tells the audience they’d be guarenteed tickets for a later gig….

In Court

2000. Eric Clapton is banned from driving for six months and fined £ 750 by a magistrate in Guildford, Surrey. Clapton, who was not in court, was given 28 days to pay the fine. His lawyer, who did attend, said the guitarist was in the U.S.A. where he will once again be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame on March 6th.

In Business

1972. Mary Hopkin announces that she and her companies consider themselves free from any contractual obligations to Apple Records. She will now start looking for a new label.

Not On The Radio

1997. Status Quo announce they are to sue the BBC after discovering they’ve been blacklisted from the Radio One playlist because they’re too old. The band has issued a writ claiming breach of contract and are seeking up to £ 250,000 in damages.

Music Paper From Today

Record Mirror from 29th February 1972. A copy taken from Rockmine’s almost complete run of U.K. music papers from the last 45 years.

Daily Babble.

As I said yesterday, I took in the Waking The Witch gig at The Warehouse in Lossiemouth. First, I want to mention the venue itself. It was a small intimate room with a blazing fire stage right which set the scene for the evening. It didn’t feel like a gig as such, more a concert in someone’s living room.

I came across the band when they were just finishing their sound check. A few minutes later, I found Becky sitting on the floor sorting through her stage clothes. It was only when she tried to stand up that the extent of her pregnancy was obvious. This girl shouldn’t be on tour! There is a humourous element to her movements but although she said she still had 5 weeks to go, it did look like she was ready to pop!

The gig was everything I expected. The group’s harmonies were perfectly matched and the playing was of the same incredibly high standard. I’ve got to say that I thought Patsy’s mandolin playing was stunning as was Becky’s bottleneck. They took a couple of numbers to really get into their stride but they were never less that great. The sound was a real niggle for me. It seemed muddy and with little spatial awareness. Becky’s guitar, stage right, was clearly heard coming from the speakers stage left.

For anyone who’s bought the last album, “Boys From The Abattoir”, the gig was a real treat with 7 tracks being played during the evening. The highlight for me was “Spring Song” which showed the girls at their melodic, lyrical best.

During the evening, they made it clear that their website www.wakingthewitch.co.uk would be used to let their fans know of all their upcoming solo projects. Gladly they’ve made it clear that no-one’s giving up on the business.

1974. Elton John creates traffic chaos when 34,000 people travel to see him perform at Western Springs Stadium in Auckland, New Zealand. Roads around the city are blocked for several hours.

In Court

2000. Lawyers for Celine Dion file a $ 20 million lawsuit at Los Angeles Superior Court against “The National Enquirer”. The suit, claiming intentional infliction of emotional distress, invasion of privacy and unfair business practices, relates to the February 1st edition which carried the headline, “Celine: I’m pregnant with twins.” The singer’s lawyers state that the story was false and that that the Enquirere made no attempt to verify the story prior to publication.

In Hospital

1972. George Harrison and his wife, Patti, are both injured in a car crash returning home from a Rick Nelson concert in London. George suffers bruising and minor concusion and requires 8 stitches to a head wound. Patti break her ribs and is unconscious for several days.

1974. Singer songwriter Bobby Bloom (“Montego Bay”) shoots himself in the head at his Hollywood apartment aged 28.

Music Paper From Today

New Musical Express from 28th February 1970. A copy taken from Rockmine’s almost complete run of U.K. music papers from the last 45 years.

Due to technical problems, yesterday’s blog never got online. My apologies to anyone who came looking for it.

One thing that did get pushed forward yesterday was the TV listings database. More than 1,200 were added and missing lists for 1958 and 1965 U.K. shows have been found! The new list is going to be much larger than the old one of 10,498 shows. It has meant that I haven’t been spending time looking for YouTube clips but I hope to get back to that next week. By then, I’ll also have a complete day sample of The Almanac up.

Not much time today as I’m heading north to see Waking The Witch play Lossiemouth tonight. Tomorrow’s blog should have a review and photos of the gig along with an interview. Make sure you check it out.

1997. Mick Jagger and Simon Le Bon have a night out together watching their wives at work. Jerry Hall and Yasmin Le Bon were strutting their stuff on he catwalk for hat designer Philip Treacey’s show at the Hippodrome in London.

In Court

1998. Pamela Anderson Lee files for divorce from Tommy Lee and receives an emergency order of protection.

Meanwhile Tommy Lee appears in handcuffs in a court in Los Angeles following charges of assaulting his wife and his seven week old son, Dylan on February 24th at the family’s Malibu home. Lee is remanded on custody pending $ 1 million bail. A statement issued by Pamela’s publicist, Marleah Leslie, said she would “vigorously cooperate in the prosecution of her husband”. Lee is still on probation following a 1996 assault charge and could face 16 years in jail if found guilty.

In Hospital

1994. Janet Jackson abandons her show in Salt Lake City. She is rushed to hospital where she is treated for flu and dehydration. She is released from the emergency room after two hours.

On Television

The Late Show with David Letterman (U.S.A.) – Shania Twain.

Death

1997. Geoge Michael‘s mother Lesley dies after a long battle with cancer. The singer had stayed at her bedside for two days after doctors told him she would not last the week. Lesley had been diagnosed as suffering from the disease last year and was only told it was terminal in December. She had been in charge of George’s London home but gave up when she became ill.

Music Paper From Today

Record Mirror from 26th February 1972. A copy taken from Rockmine’s almost complete run of U.K. music papers from the last 45 years.

1957. Stewart “Woody” Wood (The Bay City Rollers) born in Edinburgh, Scotland.

On Tour

1995. Freak Power are stopped by police at the border between Eire and Northern Ireland. They’re asked if they’re carrying any drugs and foolishly answer “yes”. They’re ordered off their bus and strip-searched while sniffer dogs search it. 22 grammes of cannabis are found on the bus and five tabs of LSD are discovered wrapped in toilet paper between singer Astley Slater‘s buttocks. The band is charged with importing drugs. They’re later fined £ 50 at a court hearing in Belfast.

In Court

1971. At the High Court in London, Mr. Morris Finer, Q.C., concludes his reading of Allen Klein’s affidavit. In it, Klein stated that, on February 9th, The Beatles were worth more than £ 6.5 million whereas at the end of 1968, they were worth £ 1 million. The affidavit was supporting the opposition by George Harrison, John Lennon and Ringo Starr to Paul McCartney‘s claim that a receiver should be appointed pending legal break-up of the group.

1968. In an interview with the B.B.C.’s “Personal Choice”, Marianne Faithfull admitted taking drugs after the breakdown of her marriage. She said she was looking for something and drugs were like “the doors of perception”. Unfortunately, the door never opened for Marianne as she went on to say, “You just see a crack”. She told her interviewer, Michael Barrett, that she no longer took drugs.

Death

1993. Toy Caldwell (The Marshall Tucker Band) dies in a car crash.

Music Paper From Today

Sounds from 25th February 1978 featuring Geddy Lee of Rush on the cover. This is a copy taken from Rockmine’s almost complete run of U.K. music papers from the last 45 years.

1942. Paul Jones (Manfred Mann, The Blues Band) born Paul Pond in Portsmouth, England. Paul was originally in a duo called Lewis and Pond. His partner in that, Elmo Lewis, was Brian Jones. Brian is said to have offered Paul the job of fronting The Rolling Stones. When asked about this in a radio interview, Paul said his agent had told him there was more security to be had working in the theatre than fronting a band!

In Business

1967. The Bee Gees sign a contract with Polydor Records that will make them millionaires less than three weeks after arriving back in Britain with only a few hundred pounds between them. Before leaving Australia, they’d sent a demo acetate to Brian Epstein at NEMS. Brian was too busy with The Beatles and gave the demo to his partner, Robert Stigwood. Stigwood tracked the group down to a rented house in Hendon only days after they’d settled in. Having contacted them, he interviewed them at his office, auditioned them at London’s Saville Theatre and offered them a management contract the next morning.

In Court

1999. Cure fan Mark Perry, 23, wins $ 75,000 damages for injuries allegedly received from Brian David Adsett, one of the band’s bodyguards when he tried to get an autograph at their hotel in 1996. The case, heard in Santa Ana, California was won by default as the band never responded to the lawsuit. According to Perry’s lawyer, Erik Gunderson, when the legal papers were served on Robert Smith, at a Hollywood autograph session, the singer responded by tearing the writ up and showering the crowd with it.

In Hospital

1979. Johnnie Wilder (Heatwave) is injured in a car crash during the band’s stay in New York for recording sessions. He is left paralysed from the neck down although he does return to studio vocal and production work.

On Television

Parkinson (U.K.) with a performance by Sade.

Death

1990. Johnnie Ray dies of liver failure in Los Angeles.

Music Paper From Today

New Musical Express from 24th February 1979. A copy taken from Rockmine’s almost complete run of U.K. music papers from the last 45 years.

Now Playing

Doveman – “The Acrobat” (2005)

Ideal for a laid-back Sunday morning when you don’t want anything too heavy. This lo-fi/dream pop/slowcore debut album is an exemplary example of subtle understated intelligent rock. Vocalist Thomas Bartlett’s words drift almost lazily over a carefully crafted backdrop of piano, violin and cornet that meld seamlessly with the guitars and drums.

The opening track, “Honey” is the definite standout but the album never struggles to interest or please.

1999. Oasis guitarist Bonehead (real name Paul Arthurs) is arrested for being drunk and disorderly at a star studded party in Tommy Hilfinger’s shop in London’s fashionable New Bond Street. At 11.30 p.m., security staff at the store called a passing policeman to help deal with Bonehead who was shouting and swearing. The policeman asked the guitarist to leave the area but he refused to do so and continued his disturbance of the event. He was then arrested and taken to a nearby police station. Bonehead was not charged but received a formal warning over his conduct prior to being released at 4.30 a.m. the next morning.

In Court

1971. All four of The Beatles appear before Mr. Justice Stamp at the High Court in London to give their versions of what prompted the break-up of their partnership. Ringo Starr said that although he respected and trusted Paul McCartney, he sometimes “behaved like a spoilt child”. He described the reaction to news that Paul’s solo album would be delayed until after the release of his own, saying Paul went “completely out of control”. “He shouted at me, prodding his fingers towards my face and said, “I’ll finish you, now!” adding “He told me to put my coat on and get out, so I did”.

At The Opera

1967. Mick Jagger and Marianne Faithfull cause a scandal when they arrive eight minutes late for a performance at the Royal Opera House in London’s Covent Garden. Already present is a member of Britain’s Royal Family, Princess Margaret, and etiquette dictates that no-one else should be admitted after she is seated.

Death

1995. Original Temptations member, Melvin Franklin (real name David English) dies, aged 52, in Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles from complications connected to his brain seizures. He had been admitted to the hospital on February 17th after suffering a seizure but never regained consciousness.

Music Paper From Today

Sounds from 23rd February 1974. A copy taken from Rockmine’s almost complete run of U.K. music papers from the last 45 years.

2001. Barbra Streisand is presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Film Institute. She can add it to the others in her trophy cabinet. She already has 2 Academy Awards, 10 Golden Globes, 10 Grammys, 2 Peabody Awards, 3 Emmys and 1 Tony! Lifetime achivement awards can be mawkish but this takes the art to new depths.

In Court

2000. The Smashing Pumpkins file a lawsuit against Ozzy Osbourne‘s wife Sharon in Los Angeles Superior Court. The suit seeks unspecified damages for breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and fraud. In the court papers, the band allege that Sharon Osbourne “reneged without notice or any warning on an agreement to manage the band” and “misappropriated funds” amounting to $ 150,000. The cash was given as an advance on signing Osbourne as manager and despite requests for its return, has not been forthcoming. The suit alleges that Osbourne “conjured absurd expenses as a claimed offset” against the funds.

In Hospital

1998. House Of Pain rapper Everlast (real name Erik Schrody) is in intensive care at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles having suffered a heart attack at the age of 27. The rap star was diagnosed as having a congenital heart defect two years ago. Since being admitted to hospital, he has had a five hour operation to fit an artificial heart valve.

On Television

1992. Soul Train (U.S.A.) featuring Peabo Bryson and MC Lyte.

Death

1976. Florence Ballard dies from a heart attack in a Detroit hospital. Seven years after leaving The Supremes, she was trying to make a comeback.

Music Paper From Today

New Musical Express from 22nd February 1969. A copy taken from Rockmine’s almost complete run of U.K. music papers from the last 45 years.

Daily Babble

It always strikes me how some days I’ll struggle to find a court case to report. I’ll go to The Almanac or the filing cabinets and there’s nothing there. TV shows aplenty, hundreds of new releases and awards and even zany headlines in the press but sometimes no-one’s in court! Today’s the opposite. It was hard to choose what to include. The big one, of course, is George Michael being sued by Marcelo Rodrigues for slander and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Rodrigues was the cop that bust George as he came out of the toilet. The lawsuit is dated today and does make fascinating reading but who’s interested anymore?

On exactly the same day (in 2000), rapper Jay-Z was formally arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court on two charges of assault after allegedly stabbing hip-hop impresario Lance “Un” Rivera on December 1st. Then a year later it’s the case involving Sean “Puffy” Combs and his bodyguard. Both men are charged with gun possession and bribery after an incident at Club New York on December 27, 1999. One year on from that in U.S. District Court for Northern California, a judge denies a request by the Record Industry Association of America for a summary judgement in their case against Napster.

That’s just some of what was happening in courtrooms on this day and I’ve only gone back a few years!

I once contributed dates of birth and death to a study being done by a London hospital on life expectancy of people who’d had a Top Ten U.K. Chart hit. I assume it was for life insurance purposes. Maybe my next project should be to look at the number of courtroom days taken by rappers against other rock and pop stars. Would that be as valuable for their legal insurance?

Talking of rappers: back in the days of the dot com boom I was tempted to start a company called notbodyarmor.com. So many rappers were getting bust for having body armour or armor, as folks across the pond call it, that something had to be done. With the clam-shell iBook made of kevlar it seemed obvious to effectively just wear on on the front and one on the back. I never did get time to work on that properly….